Previously in the Tom Coughlin era, to count out the Giants or their quarterback Eli Manning was to order a half-crow dinner and fries with extra dipping sauce. An indigestive meal deal, if you will.

Big Apple tabloids were calling for Coughlin’s head in 2007, before he led the Giants to a Super Bowl win over the undefeated Patriots.

Two years ago Manning had practically become a laughingstock until he led the Giants to their second Super Bowl win.

But now, after Sunday’s every-bit-of-that 38-0 loss at previously winless Carolina, the Giants have hit rock bottom in the Coughlin era.

They’re 0-3. They can’t run the ball. They can’t protect Manning (the Panthers sacked him seven times). Manning is having more success completing passes to defenders (seven) than touchdowns to Giants (five). And the defence can’t stop anyone in the second half.

The plummet has been fast. At the end of last October, the Giants led the NFC East with a 6-2 record and appeared as likely as anyone in the NFC to reach the Super Bowl. But then the Giants lost five of their last eight games and missed the playoffs.

But it’s worse than that. The Giants have now lost eight of their past 11 games, and five of six. Four of the five the most recent losses have been by at least 17 points, and in two of those games the Giants didn’t score a point.

Since 1978, according to STATS, only 5-of-161 NFL teams have made the playoffs after starting 0-3.

They’re done.

THE CLEVELAND BROWNS: I have no more of an explanation for their victory Sunday at Minnesota than anybody else. *Throws up hands, rolls eyes* Next.

78-YEAR DROUGHT ENDS: If you were watching the Lions-Redskins game, you heard that right. It was the first time the Lions have defeated the Redskins on the Redskins’ home turf since Oct. 13, 1935. Detroit’s 17-7 win on that date was at Fenway Park -- against the Boston Redskins, before the franchise relocated to Washington. The Skins had won 21 straight in this series at Washington.

The Detroit Lions have lost starting left defensive end Jason Jones for the year with a torn patella tendon, according to FOX Sports’ Alex Marvez. Jones was carted off early in Washington. Manitoba native Israel Idonije presumably will start the rest of the season in Jones’ place.

Packers TE Jermichael Finely took a hard hit to the head in the second quarter and never returned, with a suspected concussion.

Star Texans WR Andre Johnson left the game in Baltimore early with a lower leg injury, later said to be a shin bruise. X-rays were negative. He suffered a concussion last week. Tough season so far.

The Bills lost a slew of players who did not return against the Jets: RB C.J. Spiller (knee), CB Leodis McKelvin (hamstring), DT Marcell Dareus (ankle) and DL Alex Carrington (left leg).

SEVEN SNARKS FROM SUNDAY:

1. FRANCHISE IN A NUTSHELL: The San Diego Chargers’ entire existence can be summed up thus: They’re 1-2. They should be 3-0. Elaboration unnecessary.

2. WHAT TICKS ME OFF: When a team trails by 10 in the waning minutes, they need a touchdown and a field goal, right? Doesn’t matter in what order, right?

It’s crazy, but a team down 10 usually burns WAY too much time trying to get the touchdown first, instead of quickly kicking the field goal immediately upon moving into range, before time becomes so dire that they have to try to recover an onside kick.

Mike Shanahan and the Redskins are the latest blunderers in this regard.

With 2:29 left, Washington had a 1st-and-10 at the Detroit 18. The Redskins should have kicked the 35-yard field goal right there. They had two timeouts left and a free third timeout at the two-minute warning, so after the ensuing kickoff Detroit probably would have run it three times up the gut, with the clock stopping after each play. In that scenario, the Lions would have punted right after the two-minute warning, leaving the Redskins ample time to move down the field without any timeouts.

As it was, Shanahan kept trying for the touchdown. Six plays later, with 1:44 left, John Potter kicked a 21-yard field goal to narrow Detroit’s lead to 27-20.

Potter’s ensuing onside-kick attempt was awful. Detroit ran three times, with the Skins able to stop the clock only twice. After the third Detroit run, the clock bled. Washington didn’t get the ball back until 38 seconds remained, 80 yards away.

The game ended with the Skins still 49 yards short of the tying touchdown. Think they could have used 45 more seconds?

3. HEAD-SCRATCHING NAILBITER: The Packers-Bengals slopfest featured eight turnovers. There was no ebb and flow. The teams just took turns totally dominating the other, with the other’s generous help. Cinci took a quick 14-0 lead. Then Green Bay scored 30 unanswered points by late in the third. Cinci scored the last 20 points, the winning ones coming on a returned fumble in the final four minutes. Of course, the Bengals fumbled the recovered fumble before picking it up and returning it all the way.

By the way, Aaron Rodgers threw two picks -- his first multi-interception game in almost three years. Incredible or what.

4. THE ST. LOUIS BLUES: The Rams are awful. They’re getting worse practically by the quarter, and fortunate to be 1-2.

On Sunday in Dallas the Rams got killed, 31-7, and the Cowboys stopped trying after halftime.

It’s almost time to call the Sam Bradford experiment a failure. The fourth-year quarterback’s trend of starting as cold as Timmins in January is worsening. He guided the Rams to 18 yards of first-half offence. Eighteen.

5. FOLDING FALCONS: The Atlanta Falcons won’t become a serious threat to reach the Super Bowl until its defence can make a stop late in a game, with Atlanta ahead. Three times in the past five games going back to the playoffs, Atlanta has been clinging to a late lead only to see the defence lay down and allow the go-ahead score. The Dolphins were the latest beneficiaries on Sunday, scoring with 38 seconds left to win 27-23.

6. VIKINGS SHIP CAPSIZES: Of last season’s 12 playoff teams, the least respected by far was Minnesota. They’re earning far more disrespect this season. When you’re 0-2 then lose your home opener to the Cleveland Browns, as the Vikings did on Sunday, and make Brian Hoyer look like, well, only a slightly better version of your own beleaguered Christian Ponder -- you can go ahead and make vacation reservations for any time in January, boys.

7. ALDON ENTERING REHAB: 49ers LB Aldon Smith is leaving the team “indefinitely,” the club said after Sunday’s loss to Indy.

He will enter a substance-abuse clinic, NBC’s Peter King reported.

This after Smith’s DUI arrest on Friday, his second in three years. Evidently, all California rehab clinics were closed on the weekend, which must explain why Niners GM Trent Baalke and head coach Jim Harbaugh let Smith play against Indy.

“I don’t know that there’s a right decision in this situation … There’s not a one-day fix. We support Aldon,” Niners CEO Jed York told reporters Sunday night.

“I’ll take any shots that anybody wants to direct at the organization … We thought it was the best decision for Aldon (to play), for him to make progress and get better.”